Door opener or closer.



No. 777,193. Y PATENTBD 11110. 13, 1904.-

W. A., PAGAN. 4

DOOR OPENER OR CLOSER. APPLICATION P11511 11.11126, 19u4 i lmllll 1 gl! 1 m UNITED STATES Patented December 13, 1904.

PATENT QEETCE.

DOOR OPENER 0H CLDSEH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 777,193, dated December 13, 1904. Application filed May 26, 1904. Serial No. 209,914. (No model.)

To all whom t muy concern.-

Be it known that I, IVILLIAM A. FAGAN, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing in the city and county of San Francisco, State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Door Openers or Ulosers; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same.

The present invention comprises improved means for directly transmitting the movement of a hand-actuated attachment, device, or lever to mechanism for opening or closing a door located at a distant point-as, for instance, a street-doorethe object of the invention being' to provide means whereby a uniform and constant power is exerted on the door opening and closing means irrespective of the position of the door during the opening and closing thereof, and this Without requiring a variable strain to be expended on the lever or crank actuated from a distant point, which is the objection to a series of connected levers for operating the opening and closing means.

The exertion required to open and close the door from a distant point through the medium of direct lever connection renders it almost impossible for an ordinary woman to successively effect the opening and closing of the door from an upper floor of a house or building, inasmuch as the lever resistance is so multiplied during the transmittal of the power of the hand-actuated lever as to require an exceedingly strong' hand to overcome the same. With the hereinafter-described invention the lever resistance is materially reduced, so that the means for effecting the opening' and closing of the door may be actuated with the cxpenditure of the least hand-power.

To comprehend the invention, reference Should be had to the accompanying sheet of drawings, wherein- Figure l is an inside view of an ordinary house-door in elevation, the door-casing and stairway-casing being sectioned to illustrate the location of the various parts and the running of the wires. Fig. 2 is an irregular crosssectional top plan of the door, sta1rwaycasing, and the door-caslng. Fig'. 3 1s a side view in elevation, disclosing the oscillator and its connection with the horizontally-disposed bell-crank and the means for transmitting motion to the oscillator. Fig. et is a detail side view of the handle or hand-lever and the double lever actuated thereby for imparting motion to the oscillator. Fig. 5 is a detail plan view of the fulcrumed lever, angle-arm, and slide for imparting an initial movement tothe connections .for actuating' the releasing-bolt to release the door-catch prior to opening the door; and Fig. 6 is a side view in elevation of the means set forth in Fig. 5 of the drawings, the lever for actuating' the releasing-bolt for door-catch being' disclosed by dotted lines.

In carrying out my invention there is employed an oscillatory device, which in the present case comprises a sprocket-wheel l and shall hereinafter Ybe termed an oscillator This oscillator is mounted to swing in bearings 3 between the standards A, said standards being mounted on a plate 5 and extending upwardly such a distance as to permit the oscillater l to swing free of the horizontally-disposed bell-crank 6, pivoted to a stud 6', upwardly projecting from the plate 5. This plate, likewise the oscillator and the horizontally-disposed bell-crank, are iitted Within the stairway-casing, the said plate 5 being let therein and secured to the base-sill of the studding of the ground-iioor hallway.

From the cross-shaft 7 for the oscillator l depends a crank-arm 8, the free end of which is connected by a link 9 to the inner arm of the bell-crank 6. The outer arm of this bell-crank 6 extends or projects through an opening' 7 at the foot of the stairway-casing' and is connected to the free end of a horizontally-movable lever l0 by a link 11. This lever l() is fulcrumed within a plate l2, iitted in the bottom rail of the door 13 near the inner edge thereof. Said lever l0 by the action or movement of the horizontally-disposed bell-crank 6 acts to swing the door to open or close the same. The lever l() has hinged thereto the angle-arm 14, the forward or outer end of which is preferably bifurcated, so as to straddle the said lever 10. To the inner end portion is hinged a slide 15, which slide works within the plate l2, the inner end thereof bearing against a IOL shoulder 16, projecting from the curved lever 17 pivoted to the hanging-stile 19 of the doorcasing. To the lower or free end of the lever 17 is connected one end of the wire 20, which wire is run through the threshold 20' of the door-casing and is secured at its opposite end to the bell-crank 21, hinged to a stud 22 within the lock-stile 23 of the door-casing. The opposite arm of the bell-crank 21 has attached thereto the lower end of the wire 211, the upper end of which is secured to a longitudinallymovable releasing-bolt 25.

The releasing-bolt 25 works through a catchopening in the lock-plate 25, tted in the lockstile of the door-casing. The said releasingbolt 25 is held in place by means of the screwstud 26, which screw-stud passes through a slot' 26 cut in the said bolt. To the releasingbolt 25 is secured a roll 27, which roll rides on the inclined shoulder 27 of the lock-plate The outer or free end of the releasingbolt 25 when the door is closed bears against the door-catch 28.

The releasing-bolt 25 is normally held inward within the lock-plate by the tension of the spring 28, which spring is attached at one end to the inner end of the said releasing-bolt 25 and its opposite end to the lock-stile of the door-casing. As the inner end of the releasing-bolt 25 is drawn downward the roll 27 carried thereby rides upon the inclined shoulder 27 and gradually moves or forces the said bolt outward at an inclination to the Jface of the door-catch. Vith this movement the pressure of the releasing-bolt 25 against the face of the door-catch 28 will force the said doorcatch outward from within the catch-opening of the lock-plate 25', so as to leave the door free to be opened.

At the head of the stairway or other distant point and within the stairway-casing is located the double lever 31, which is connected by the wires or lines 30 3() to the ends of the sprocket-band 29. This sprocket-band partly encircles the sprocket or toothed oscillator 1, so that the oscillator is oscillated in the direction of the strain applied on the band 29 through the medium of the lines or wires 30 30. The lever 31 is secured to a rock-shaft 33, working in bearing of the support 33, and to one end of said shaft is attached the operating-handle or hand-lever 32, which is located outside of the stairway-casing.

The operation of opening and closing the door is as follows: The handle or hand-lever 32 is pushed downward, which operates the rock-shaft 33 to throw the innermost arm of the double lever 31 upward. As thus moved the wire 30' is drawn therewith, which exerts a strain on the oscillator 1, through the medium of the band 29, to rotate the same in such a direction as to throw the crank-arm 8, depending from the cross-shaft 7, rearward. The crank-arm as thus moved causes the connecting-link 9 to swing the bell-crank 6 to throw its outer projecting arm inwardly. This movement of the bell-crank 6, through the medium of the link 11, draws upon the lever 10 to pull the door open. As vthe strain is placed on the lever 10 the initial action thereoi1 is to cause the angle-arm 111 to force the slide 15 outward, which, bearing against the shoulder 16 of the curved lever 17, forces the said lever 17 toward the hanging-stile of the door-casing. This movement of the lever 17 exerts a pulling strain on the wire 2O to operate the bell-crank 21, so as to exert a down pull on the wire 24. The pull on the wire 2-1 draws the releasing-bolt 25 downward, which through the medium of the roll 27 and incline-shoulder 27 acts against the door-catch 28 to force the same from within the catch-opening of the lock-plate 25, so as to release the door. It will be understood that when the handle or hand-lever 32 is pulled upward when the door stands open a reverse movement is imparted to the described parts in order to close the door, the releasing-bolt and its connected parts being restored to normal position by the tension of the spring 28.

By the employment of the oscillator 1 to transmit the movement of the handle or handlever 32 to open or close the door 13 increase of leverage is dispensed with and a uniform and constant pressure is exerted on the opening and closing means irrespective of the position of the door. This is a decided advantage in connection with mechanism of the described character, inasmuch as it enables the opening and closing means to be operated at a minimum expenditure of hand-power, as the oscillator provides a balanced transmitter which responds to the slightest movement of the handle or hand-lever 32. Again, the power exerted by the oscillator on the opening and closing means is the same at whatever position the oscillator assumes. Hence the door is actuated by the same pressure irrespective of the position which it assumes. An exceedingly sensitive, positive, and strong transmitter of power is thus provided which will readily respond to the action of a comparatively young child manipulating the handle or handlever 32.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new, and desired to be protected by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a door opening and closing system, the combination with devices for releasing the door-catch, of means for actuating said devices and opening and closing the door, which means include a balanced oscillator located within the lower portion of the stairway-casing adjacent the inner edge of the door, said oscillator controlling the movement of the opening and closing means, a hand-lever located at a distance from the door, and flexible connections between the hand-lever and the oscillator for transmitting the movement of the said lever to operate the oscillator, said TOO ilexible connections exerting an equal strain upon the oscillator in each direction.

2, In a door opening and closing system, the combination with a horiZontally-disposed bellcrank pivoted to work within a stair-casing, of a connection between said bell-crank and the door to be operated, a balanced toothed oscillator pivoted within the lower portion of the stairway-casing adjacent the inner edge of the door, a connection between the oscillator and the bell-crank so as to positively operate the bell-crank with the movement of the oscillator, a hand-actuated device located at a distance from the door to be operated, and flexible connections between the hand-actu ated device and the balanced oscillator for transmitting the movement of the said handactuated device to operate the oscillator, said flexible connections exerting an equal strain upon the oscillator in each direction.

3. In a door opening and closing system, the combination with a toothed oscillator, ot' a sprocket-band working thereon, handactuated devices located at a distance from the door to be operated, and connections between the said devices and the sprocket-band for transmitting' the movement of the hand-actuated devices to operate the oscillator.

1i. In a door opening and closing system, the combination with the releasing-bolt for operating the door-catch to release the door, of a lever hung within the hanging-stile of the door-casing, connections between said lever and the releasing-bolt, .a slide working within a plate fitted within the door and serving to move the described lever to release the door catch, a lever secured within the said plate, an angle-arm connection between the said lever and the slide, a horizontally-disposed bellcrank for exerting a pulling or a pushing strain upon the said lever to open and close the door, and a link connection between the lever and the bell-crank.

5. In adoor openingy and closing system, the combination with the releasingJbolt for operating' the door-catch to release thc door, off a lever hung within the hanging-stile of the doorcasing, connections between said, lever and the releasing-bolt, a slide working within a plate fitted within the door and serving to move the described lever to release the door-catch, a le Veras l0-secured within thc said plate, an angle-arm connection between the said lever and the slide, a horizontallydisposed bellcrank for exerting a pulling or a pushing lstrain onto the said lever to open and close the door, a link connection between the lever and the bell-crank, an oscillator for imparting movement to the bell-crank, connections between the oscillator and the said bell-cranl, handactuated devices located at a distance from the door to be operated, and connections for transmitting the movement or' the hand actuated devices to operate the oscillator.

6. In a door opening and closing system, the combination with a hand-actuated device lo cated at a distance from the door to be operated, oi' a toothed oscillator hung within the stairwaycasing, a sprocket band engaging with the oscillator, connections between the said band and the hand-actuated device for transmitting the motion thereoi to operate the oscillator, and connections i'or transmitting the motion ol the oscillator to operate the door.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

IVILLIAM A. PAGAN.

-Vitnessesz Il. A. AGKER, D. B. RICHARDS. 

